Contact Sales

(888) 901-3471

Customer Service

Categories

7 secrets in planning a hugely successful web conference

July 7, 2014 in

Planning is the key. Well before the day of your web conference, cover these tried-and-true steps, and the rest will be easy.

First think, ‘What are my clients are really concerned about?’ ‘What’s keeping them up at night?’ How will your webinar make your client’s lives easier? Relevance is the key in developing truly engaging content.

Write a killer title. Market research indicates that 8 out of 10 people will read headline material--but it has also found that only two out of ten will read the rest. So it’s all important to convince them out the outset. Here are a couple of ways to compose titles that will do that:

Use a specific number: “Five essential components of a successful vegetable garden.” With this type of title, people feel that the information in your online meeting is easily graspable, well-organized, and useful.

Make a large claim: Instead of, “Getting a rock-bottom price on your next new car purchase,” use, “The sure-fire way to get a rock-bottom price on your next new car purchase.”

Practice--out loud. Do not forgo this step. You need to do a full (or nearly full) dry run, with all key players participating.

If you use a webinar hosting company, talk it all over with them a week before and then touch base again the day before. You must be familiar with the web conferencing platform you will be using. If you will have a moderator, or more than one, you need to get on the same page with them as well.

Any public speaking coach will tell you that your delivery will be 100 percent more confident and fluid if you do an out-loud rehearsal. Time-honored method: stand in front of a mirror.

4. Publicize your online meeting in strategic steps:

- Send out a general announcement, with registration.

- Then soon after, poll your customers by email, soliciting their opinion as to what should be covered in your presentation. Ask them for questions for your keynote speaker. Tell them that their views will guide your content, and they will feel they are stakeholders, and put their best thought into giving you good information.

- A week before, ask your registrants to confirm.

- Send out reminders of the event three days before and one day before.

5. Make it easy for people to register. It’s tempting to gather sales-qualifying information, but leave most of that for later. Fine to ask a couple of important questions, but if you ask too much, you run the very real risk of drop-out. Reduce those input fields—each one is an incremental barrier to participation. Even if you make fields optional, just the sight of them can put people off. Ask for little more than their name and email. Save the detailed questions for later, when they sign up for one of your tempting offers.

6. Have a checklist, and include the mundane and obvious, such as turning off your cellphone and any daily watch alarms you may have set. Such things can slip your mind when you’re under pressure!

7. Last but not least: remember to be well-rested and fed, so that you can be your brilliant best!